Japanese electronics giant and luxury watch brand Casio has announced plans to launch non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for its flagship watch G-SHOCK on Polygon blockchain.
The launch is in partnership with Ethereum scaling developer Polygon Labs, and will kick off with an NFT-based collection of community access passes.
According to a statement by the company, users can start claiming one of 15,000 NFT-based G-SHOCK creator passes from 23 September, which will grant them access to a dedicated Discord channel for the project.
The statement further said that Casio customers who have already registered for a CASIO ID at the company’s membership site can participate in the pre-distribution stage from Sept. 23-26, followed by the distribution phase from 26-29 September.
Casio’s selection of Polygon to launch its web3 venture was inspired by the network’s “lightning-fast transactions to make the process of minting and managing their NFTs seamless, convenient and carbon-neutral.”
“At its core, our virtual G-SHOCK was built to be accessible, innovative and inclusive, meaning that user experience must be frictionless and simple. This is why Polygon was the most natural and logical choice for us,” Casio Senior General Manager of Timepieces Takahashi Oh said.
Community-Based Development
Casio is a popular brand when it comes to wrist watches. However, that’s just one aspect of the company, as it also manufactures electronics and other less known items. The company is working with its community of fans to create the NFTs as it is meant to be community-driven.
“The goal is for the company and users to work together and develop the G-SHOCK brand, which celebrated its 40th anniversary this year,” Oh further stated.
In line with this vision, Casio will invite users to submit design ideas for the G-SHOCK creator pass and vote on its appearance during its first community initiative. The design that emerges winner will then become a variant of the NFT pass.
When ready, the collection will be available to residents of the U.S., UK, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Austria, Japan, India, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines and Vietnam, according to the company.
Brands Launching NFTs on Polygon
Polygon has become a popular destination for big brands to launch NFTs, as NFTs are becoming common. Casio is the latest of these brands now to launch on the network. Other brands that have launched NFTs on Polygon are DraftKings, which launched an NFT marketplace on Polygon in 2021.
Adidas and Prada launched an NFT project on Polygon featuring user-generated content, while Starbucks launched its NFT collection in April this year. Polygon celebrates this move by big brands entering the crypto industry.
“It is inspiring to see that more and more global brands are embracing decentralization by expanding their presence in the web3 world,” Polygon Labs co-founder Jordi Baylina said.
